Someday: My 25th Blog of the year 2026

Well, welcome to our readers here in New Zealand, & around the world, I'm Whetu Ngapo & you're tuning in to my KiwiAvenger blog here on blogger (And it's good Friday out here today as part of the long Easter weekend so I decided to post it today so that's why), but first in the tennis department that Jakub Mensik from Czechia (Who was the 4th Czech player to win the tournament after Karel Novacek way back in 1991 then Jiri Novak also way back in 1996 & Jiri Vesely back in 2015) has won the men's ASB Classic after a commanding win against Sebastian Baez from Argentina during the men's singles final just a day before the Australian Tennis Open gets underway, but there was once a dreadful but shocking story that I remember from the late Carole who was telling about it about Serena Williams who never came back to Indian Wells for 14 years in which she returned in 2015 due to that terrible incident involving her being booed by the crowd in wake of a racist outburst hurled at her after Serena's sister Venus, who had to pull out of the semi through a injured knee that resulted in a boycott for Serena (Who won in the women's singles final in the aftermath of beating the Belgian competitor Kim Clijsters) back in 2001 in which she vowed never to return as the event was dogged or blighted I should say by an aggressive crowd who put her off by showing hostility towards the Williams family due to Venus who pulled out of the last minute citing a injured knee from her match in the semi against her sister Serena with their dad & coach of the late Richard (Who was immortalized in a movie of King Richard that was released in 2021) who had been accused of match-fixing claims, but there has been an update in the Australian tennis open that Elena Rybakina (Who won the first set then dropped the 2nd & during the 3rd that she took the lead after being 3 - 0 down, but maintained it until the finish) has beaten twice champion Aryna Sabalenka to win the women's singles crown, while in the men it went to Spain's world number 1 Carlos Alcaraz who dispatched 10 time champion Novak Djokovic to dominate the last 3 sets after Novak won the opening set for which was I thought it's good according to Andy on Messenger.

And secondly onto the rugby stuff that it's official, Scott Robertson is out, as the All Blacks coach (His record against stronger opposition of teams such as South Africa (Who will play the All Blacks in a record 4 tests this year against the 4 time world champions of the Springboks, 3 in South Africa such as Joburg twice (At Ellis Park then FNB Stadium (AKA Soccer City) in Soweto), Cape Town, & one in the United States in Baltimore, Maryland (Both sides could pull out due to a boycott being issued against the US (Especially the World Cup in which European teams could pull out if the US potentially could start a war on Greenland owned by Denmark) because of its authoritarian regime by that dreadful American leader & their administration that has moved to weaponize visa loopholes as they are introducing outright suspensions for some nationalities, citing national security as a reason regarding to the ICE murders in Minnesota in wake of the government immigration war that took the lives of both people, while the Baltimore test was noted as drawing in broader issues of politics, with potential for protests and scrutiny of enforcement, including potential involvement of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in the broader context of political events surrounding the match) to showcase rugby there in America when the nation gears up to host the 2031 men's Rugby World Cup (And it'll be the 3rd straight year the All Blacks will come over to the US where they played against Fiji in San Diego, California the year before, & against Ireland (Who will be without Bundee Aki who has been stood down for the next 3 Six Nations matches against France, then England & Italy through suspension as a result for hurling abuse towards the referee during a United Rugby Championship game between Ulster & Leinster in which he broke misbehaviour loopholes that World Rugby has already launched a war on hate towards the officials in rugby, & it is similar to hate speech because this is just exactly like racism, homophobia, islamophobia & antisemitism) in Chicago, Illinois (That's the hometown of famous pro wrestler CM Punk (An ageing WWE superstar who is currently the WWE World Heavyweight Champion, & is in his late 40's because he's 47 now, but it has been 2 decades since he made his World Wrestling Entertainment (For which has once been taken over by Seth Rollins who used to spearhead his villainous faction called The Vision (Consisting of him, former Intercontinental champions Bron Breakker & Aussie Bronson Reed, with Paul 'The Ringmaster' Heyman as its manager, but now includes Logan Paul & Austin Theory) in which social media superstar Logan Paul who set his sights of leading the Vision at WrestleMania, & he said that Logan would get his head kicked on Rollins (Who always cops plenty of beef towards 'The Straight Edge Superstar' due to the grudge rivalry between the two, but the reaction of 'The Visionary' was like when 'The Best in the World' appeared as cover athlete of the new game that he threw up to bits, even though he lost the title to Punk months ago, and Roman Reigns had to appear on the Pat McAfee show about being 40, then having his habit of going to the gym just like one of his rivals Brock Lesnar, as well as he was being overly impressed about his performance of winning the men's Royal Rumble in which he sets his sights on his key rival of Punk, & of course being a San Francisco 49ers fanatic in which they missed out on a chance of reaching the NFC playoff game which had gone in the Seattle Seahawks way in the divisional round) debut back in 2006 (His unofficial appearance was at WrestleMania 22 20 years ago back in 2006 in Rosemont which near his hometown of Chicago were he was an extra dressing up as a 1920's prohibition era mafia member for the WWE Champion at the time of John Cena's entrance against Triple H for his defence of the title) as part of being in the ECW (Extreme Championship Wrestling that lasted until 2010) roster, 7 years before he left in either 2013 or 2014, then he returned in 2023 after spending most of the time in the rival wrestling promotion company of AEW (All-Elite Wrestling), & now he is the cover athlete of WWE 2K26 (For which I already got on the PS5 with the Monday Night War edition, but I started to follow wrestling once again since the female African American wrestler formerly from AEW who crossed over to make her WWE debut in 2023, of Jade Cargill who ended the utter dominance of the young lady known as 'Tiffy Time' of Tiffany Stratton (She made her debut in the same year as her new rival of Jade following her graduation from NXT) in the women's wrestling division, to claim the WWE Women's Championship, but Cargill had been heavily criticised for her outdated appearance in the game according to the news report related to wrestling) in which the showcase mode focuses the career of 'The Second City Saint' in which he'll appear in the latest wrestling game which will be the largest in WWE 2K series history alongside the Rock (One of the legends of wrestling who will appear alongside 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin, the Undertaker, Triple H, Kurt Angle, the late Chyna, the late 'Hollywood' Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, Goldberg, Booker T (Who will be part of the commentary team alongside former British pro wrestler Wade Barrett to join the likes of Byron Saxton, ex-wrestler turned broadcaster Corey Graves & 'The voice of the WWE', Michael Cole), & Eric Bischoff & others like Kane, Trish Stratus, Lita, Stephanie 'Steph' McMahon, & the Dudley Boyz of Bubba Ray & D-Von), John Cena, Rhea Ripley (One of the 4 Aussies in action alongside Grayson Waller, Indie Hartwell, & Reed, but Rhea is a bit of a slight lookalike of the former female German tennis player of Andrea Petkovic better known as 'Petko'), Rey Fenix, & others like Roman, Seth, Iyo Sky (Also one of the Japanese wrestlers involved along with Asuka & Kairi Sane), Naomi, Joel Hendry (Who has been labelled as the next Drew McIntyre due to him appearing on NXT, & one of the Scottish wrestlers appearing along with McIntyre, Nikki Cross from the Wyatt family, & the Secret Hervice consisting of both Alba Fyre & Piper Niven (Security managers & protectors of female Canadian wrestler Chelsea Green who is a leader of the Green Regime, an all-girl villainous tag team stable (Compared to Team Rhiyo which is a Aussie-Japanese all-girl tag team duo pair consisting of Iyo & Rhea), Penta (The one who ended the reign of 'Dirty' Dominik Mysterio of becoming the Intercontinental champion), Rey Mysterio, Rey's son of 'Dirty' Dominik (An apparent heir of the late 'Latino Heat' of Eddie Guerrero), Belair, Cody (The Undisputed WWE Champion who is set to take on one of his former friend of Randy Orton), & Punk) last year in which we managed to erase the painful memories we had from 2016, but of course that the Americans will have a love affair of getting hooked into rugby after being used to follow the sport of gridiron mainly such as the National Football League (NFL, as there has an update about the teams who'll play at Superbowl LX is set, it'll be the New England Patriots, who are up against the Seattle Seahawks, in a rematch of Superbowl XLIX where the Patriots led by Tom Brady at the time had denied the Seahawks a chance of defending the Vince Lombardi trophy (That honour went to the Kansas City Chiefs who won it when Superbowl LVIII was played when they beat the San Francisco 49ers, before missing out last year to the Philadelphia Eagles (Who lost it to the 49ers during the NFC playoff wildcard game this season) during Superbowl LIX in Santa Clara, California at Levi's Stadium (Home of the San Francisco 49ers), Argentina, England (Including Ardie Savea's dreadful performance as an All Black in that game which led to his downfall) & France was poor but wayward on that occasion even though our next test is against the French in Christchurch due in July this year for the historic first ever game of the new World Rugby Nations Championship, at a brand new stadium near them, that is at One New Zealand Stadium in Christchurch (A new home of the reigning champion Crusaders in Super Rugby Pacific & current holders Canterbury in the National Provincial Championship (NPC) sponsored by Bunnings), with the national team seeking to replace the man they call 'Razor' with 3 possible candidates such as the former Wallabies coach Dave 'Renns/Renn' Rennie, as well as the Springboks assistant coach Tony 'Brownie' Brown, & the Highlanders head coach Jamie 'Joe' Joseph, even though with the trio are expected to be in the frame to become the next AB's coach (And unlike the greatest achievement of Sir Graham 'Ted' Henry's life was winning the men's Rugby World Cup for the All Blacks in 2011 after 24 years of heartbreak & disappointment, & being appointed again following the failure of the 2007 tournament (The first & only time New Zealand had tasted defeat in a men's RWC quarterfinal game (But our likely opponent for the quarters for the next men's RWC will be South Africa if we beat the host nation of the Wallabies during pool play), & it should've gone to Robbie Deans anyway as Ted's replacement who instead went to our old foe of Australia from 2008, until he left in 2013 post-British & Irish Lions series) according to Sir Graham presents the World Cups: 1987 to 2015 book that I still got in my bedroom for which I have not read that book for a long time, & I've had that book since 2016 a year after the AB's had last won the men's Rugby World Cup to date back in 2015).

And thirdly in motor racing that 5 years have passed since the most iconic voice of motor racing named Murray Walker (One of my fave racing commentators of all time if not one of the best & most entertaining) who was from the UK (He even served in World War II for the British armed forces) who passed away in 2021 due to old age at 98 as he was respected throughout the entire motorsport community in the UK, & around the world known for his skills of calling motor races, especially in Formula One where he was once the original voice of F1 (And now they have David Croft who has taken over as the current voice of Formula 1, while Alex Jacques is the other voice of F1 as well, then Harry Benjamin as another one of the voices of F1, compared to Will Buxton being the voice of IndyCar when Fox took over the broadcasting rights from NBC since last year as he took over from Leigh Diffey, then Kevin Lee, & Neil Crompton the former Aussie race car driver who is the voice of the Supercars Championship since 2016 from 'Rusty' of Greg Rust), but his most iconic moment of calling a race was Damon Hill (Who was the first second generation world champion before German born Nico Rosberg (Son of Finnish driver who was the 1982 world champ Keke) who did it in 2016 even before retiring for good) where he followed his late dad Graeme's footsteps of becoming champion of the world in both 1962 & 1968) finally becoming world champion in 1996 (2 years after he fell short by the barest of margins way back in 1994 (For that was the year which had been marred by the fatal accident in Imola, Italy during the San Marino Grand Prix that took the life of one of the all-time greats of the sport of the Brazilian hero, Ayrton Senna who was a 3 time Formula One world champion) against the ever controversial German of Michael Schumacher who thought that he deliberately took out Hill in which the collision between the two during the Australian Grand Prix at Adelaide who would host the Grand Prix for the penultimate time, had decided the world championship resulting in the British driver's retirement that handed 'Schumi' the title (And that would have been a penalty for avoidable contact as of today) with Walker's iconic line which will be remembered of "And I've got to stop, because I've got a lump in my throat", & there was another one that the late Austrian of Niki Lauda had pulled out in Mount Fuji, Japan 1976 thinking that it was unsafe to continue for him due to the wet weather conditions (He made an incredible comeback in Italy after he defied his doctors orders) meaning that he did not want to take a risk, citing fears about the near fatal crash that he experienced in Germany therefore causing him to miss a couple of races, allowing also the late British driver of James Hunt who sniffed a chance to beat Lauda for the world title, & he delivered for that was immortalized already in the 2013 movie Rush (Which was released in cinemas 12 years before the Brad Pitt film called F1: the Movie (Which is about Sonny Hayes making his comeback by returning to the sport 30 years after his near fatal accident that he was involved with had cut short his promising F1 career) that came out last year for which was better than the Gran Turismo Based on a True Story movie that was released in 2023, but far better than the 2001 CART Champ Car movie starring Sylvester Stallone (Of both Rambo & Rocky fame who portrayed Joe 'Hummer' Tanto who is tempted to come out of retirement to aid a rookie of Jimmy Bly who dominated the first part of the season, until he struggled mid-season with his German rival of Beau Brandenburg (A character inspired by the most controversial German F1 legend of Michael Schumacher (Compared to the late Brazilian hero of Ayrton Senna who was the greatest Formula One driver of all-time), with German movie star Til Schweiger reprising that role) closing in of ending Bly's chances of becoming the CART World Series champion) of Driven (It was originally conceived as an F1 movie, but they ended up making a film about the CART World Series), & also in 1986 that Nigel Mansell's chances of becoming a maiden world champion had been blown up with a flattie (A tyre delamination I should say) that cost him a big chance over in Adelaide, Australia, therefore handing the world championship to Frenchman Alain Prost who dominated the Australian Grand Prix in a McLaren (And the reason why I'm backing McLaren is that it's a British car manufacturer, but it's founded by a late New Zealander who was the Le Mans 24 Hours winning driver of Bruce McLaren despite that the fact that I'm a Liam Lawson fan throughout (He made his debut in the Netherlands in 2023 for Alphatauri therefore subbing in for the injured Aussie Daniel Ricciardo until he returned in the US GP in Austin until he left a year later the year before allowing Lawson to take back his race seat which outraged most Aussie F1 fans (Especially on social media), until Lawson (Well, security must've been arranged to guard the New Zealander in time for the Mexican GP for that was the year before) transferred to the main Red Bull team in which he had an unsuccessful tenure after 2 races in that he chose to return to RB Racing Bulls where he has been there since) meaning that Mansell had to wait 6 years later, of becoming the world champion way back in 1992 in a car equipped with electronic gizmos for which is motor racing's version of cricket's bodyline in 1932-33 where the English fielders had employed brutal tactics against the Aussie batters during the Ashes series.

And finally in the cricket that India led the ODI series 1 - 0, but it was the Black Caps (Who are without our frontline players such as Tom Latham, Kane Williamson, Mitchell Santner, Jacob Duffy & others) turn to dominate the last 2 One Day Internationals with our start batter Daryl Mitchell scoring none other than back to back centuries (He scored an unbeaten 131 in the 2nd One Day International where he hit the winning runs, then 137 in the 3rd & deciding ODI) along with Will Young who posted a ton in the 3rd ODI to win the series after being 1 - 0 down for a historic One Day International series win against the Indians on Indian soil even though we have a T20I series in hand against India which is our last series hit-out before the men's T20 Cricket World Cup gets underway on February 7th where the Indians will defend their title after their success the year before against South Africa (Who completed a redemption story as they erased their painful memories in Barbados to win the World Test Championship against the defending champions at the time of the Aussies in front of a packed crowd although the WTC final was completed inside 4 days out of the originally scheduled 5 then a reserve day at Lord's in London, England last year) in the final at Kensington Oval in Barbados in which they redeemed themselves a year after losing to Australia (Whose pathway began after not making the semifinal stages of their home men's T20 Cricket World Cup in 2022 therefore failing to defend their title that they won in 2021 in the UAE & Oman, but first, they had to win their first WTC crown by beating India in the final at the Oval in London, then they retained the Ashes against England despite a drawn series) in 2023 during the men's ODI Cricket World Cup at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

So that is my 673rd blog of the year 2026 (MMXXVI) & my 25th of this year, viva Ukraine.

P.S. And it is within deep sadness as the entertainment world is in mourning as martial artist & film star Chuck Norris has recently passed away aged 86 just 9 days after his birthday, so rest in paradise, but all thoughts, prayers, & heartfelt condolences go to his family back in the United States for that sad but tough time.

Chuck Norris

1940 - 2026

Purple Rain: My 24th Blog of the year 2026

Well, welcome to our readers here in New Zealand, & around the world, I'm Whetu Ngapo & you're tuning in to my KiwiAvenger blog here on blogger, but first that Canada had agreed to sign a trade deal with China therefore the Americans are outraged about the situation being unfolded, but the Canadians had stopped selling American whisky, & had to change the coffee brand from Americano to Canadiano due to the tariff debacle that had been arisen by that dreadful American leader (Who is shunned by many people who are non-supporters of the US President in fact, oh shameless because not only I'm getting fed up about the US President who is like a bully similar to that leader of that country who started that dreadful invasion since 2022 as well as other leaders from China, Iran & North Korea) that happened last year according to the comment from Aunty Tan who was here with Rejean exactly 9 days ago as of January 11th this year (And every NHL game for when the national anthem is played, the fans will have to show respect if the US national anthem is played in Canada, & if the Canadian national anthem is played in the US due to a clamp down being enforced on American fans putting off the Canadian one in the US with a chorus of boos, or the Canadian fans putting off the American one in Canada with also a chorus of boos, just like in cricket where the fielders especially the slips are asked to show respect towards the batter to avoid getting penalty runs for putting off the batter by distracting them, golf where the sign always asks the crowd for silence, rugby in which they told not to boo the kicker every time they take a conversion or penalty goal in such rugby grounds such as Europe & Japan, & tennis for that the players are ready (One is serving & the other is receiving).

And secondly that there was once a cricket story about the late 'Warney' of Shane Warne (An Aussie cricket immortal just like the late Sir Don Bradman who passed away in 2022 in Thailand during his holiday a year after he was unhurt but escaped with bruises in a motorbike accident with his son Jackson in 2021 due to heart complications regarding to his severe chest pain, & the one who met celebs such as Sylvester Stallone, 'Sugar' Ray Leonard & Dwayne Johnson (The man formerly known as Rocky Maivia who was known back then as the Rock) who got injured during an ODI match for Australia against England back in 2002 with him writhing in pain & agony in the aftermath of bowling a ball, then attempting to field that he popped his right shoulder (He's had both ops to repair these certain injuries according to the autobiography of him about how painful & agonising it was to miss a certain men's ODI Cricket World Cup in South Africa 2003 like that (He appeared in both way back in 1996 as the Aussies fell short against Sri Lanka on that occasion, then 1999 where he was part of the winning side) therefore signalling the end of his one day career (He had taken diuretics, or fat pills to aid the recovery whilst making into the 2003 men's ODI Cricket World Cup squad on the advice of his mum, but he got suspended however for a year) just like Phil 'Tuffers the Cat' Tufnell that his last ODI match was against New Zealand for England in Christchurch in which he got standout player of the game honours way back in 1997 before being dropped for the match at McLean Park in Napier due to the boundaries being shorter which marked the beginning of the end of his one day career, & 'Was' of Wasim Akram (The men's ODI Cricket World World Cup winning player from 1992 where Pakistan triumphed when the tournament was held in both Australia & New Zealand, & one of the true stars of cricket during the 90's period along with the late Warne & the controversial Sri Lankan Muttiah Muralidaran) as well when he opted to pull out of that crucial knockout game in the quarterfinal for Pakistan against India also way back in 1996 through a side strain (For that worsened during training prior to the quarters in which Wasim's injury that he elected to withdraw that cost Pakistan a fortune of reaching the semi for that really was a game changer, as well as their chances & aspirations of defending their title) he sustained in the win against New Zealand in a group match in which the Pakistani cricket fans were livid & outraged as they pelted stones towards his home in Pakistan & receiving death threats that is not nice, also therefore allowing Aamir Sohail to hand over responsibilities as the captain of that game which had gone in India's way.

And thirdly that we're going to have both covered stadiums here in New Zealand, all in the South Island such as both Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin which opened in 2011 before the men's Rugby World Cup tournament as a replacement for Carisbrook, & then One New Zealand Stadium in Christchurch that is due to open in April this year also as replacement of Lancaster Park who had to close it down, then demolish it due to earthquake damage in time for Super Round (Which is held in New Zealand for the first time after a 2 year absence as they take over from Melbourne who previously hosted it from 2022 until the year before when the Rebels agreed to pull out from the competition post season) on ANZAC weekend during the Super Rugby Pacific competition which will celebrate 30 years since the Southern Hemisphere rugby comp had started with the first match of the professional era here in New Zealand being staged in Palmerston North (AKA Palmy) between the Hurricanes (Who had both Tana Umaga & Christian Cullen as their star men), & the eventual champions the Blues (Who had their star talisman & once our poster boy of New Zealand rugby of the late Jonah Lomu who I thought had a disappointing Super 12 according to the Lomu mini-series that was shown in 2019, but he had a decent but great season altogether, & Carlos Spencer who was with the team altogether).

And lastly that according to the text message on Messenger that one of my friends on Facebook of Justine Hoeta-McDonnell who lives in Brisbane says that she talks to one of her friends of Hera often but never sees her a lot, & then all of a sudden that she was thrilled that Hera is about to get married to Brendan Baker meaning that their children of girls Willow & her little sis Charli who both were stoked & delighted that their parents were engaged on that matter according to that little family (And Justine said to me that she remembers me well, especially when I once saw her that she alluded to me about when Mrs Penny played the piano during the school assembly back in my Raetihi Primary School days, & I heard that she's married & had kids just like Hera), & there was a fact about her that she lived there in Whanganui such as Springvale first then Castlecliff with her Nan, but Justine used to go to Whanganui High School which is me & Jansi's old school, & she used to walk all the way to WHS when she used to live in Springvale, & Justine used to catch the bus to Whanganui High School when she once lived in Castlecliff.

So that is my 672nd blog of the year 2026 (MMXXVI) & my 24th of this year, viva Ukraine.

When the Doves Cry: My 23rd Blog of the year 2026

Well, hey everyone, welcome to our readers here in New Zealand, & around the world, I'm Whetu Ngapo & you're tuning in to my KiwiAvenger blog here on blogger, but first that the Americans are attempting to start a war on Venezuela (And that dreadful American leader says that he'll issue it of beginning that invasion, meanwhile the Democrats are one step closer of blocking or I should say thwarting that request by the Republican ruled US Senate thinking that it is never going to happen) after the Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro (Who is charged with criminal offenses such as corruption) & his wife have been abducted & detained by US Special Forces therefore the Chinese & the Russians thought about retaliation of taking Maduro back from the Americans just like Bashir al-Assad who fled Syria just to be in Russia after the invasion between pro-government & rebel forces (And my life is threatened due to the fact that I might be traumatised about it (Since that dreadful tragedy near Bondi Beach that claimed 15 innocent lives (It was the Port Arthur shooting from 1996, revisited) as the Australian government had issued a war on both hate speech such as antisemitism, & terror symbols, as well as sweeping changes to the firearm legislations in that state of New South Wales), despite that I'm safe & not in danger in my country of New Zealand compared to Iceland which is one of the most safest places on earth since 2008 (Although Chernobyl in Ukraine due to a nuclear accident in 1985 remains as one of the most dangerous (Even lethal but deadly as a result of lingering radiation) in the world along with North Sentinel in India (For which is by far the most hostile & hated tribe in the world), Syria, Afghanistan, Snake Island in Brazil, Danakil Desert in Ethiopia as well as Death Valley in the United States, & Lake Natron in Tanzania), & others like Ireland, Austria & Switzerland being the least hostile (Or most friendly I should say) as well as the least dangerous (Or more like the most peaceful & safest) in the world).

And secondly that the police shooting/shootout stuff in Grand Theft Auto IV (In which the game to most people was rubbish back in 2008 when it was released, compared to last year for which was considered legendary (And unlike Gran Turismo 7 being a banger according to the previous gaming related story that I did on my blogs, also compared to Rugby League 26 that was considered a clanger), reminds me a little of that dreadful invasion since 2022 (For which is the first invasion in history to involve drones (It was in 2008 (The year that GTA IV is set, 5 years before Grand Theft Auto V took place in 2013 (That is 13 long years before the upcoming GTA VI is set this year when the game is due to come out in November), & 7 years after the events of Grand Theft Auto III (Which took place 9 years following GTA: San Andreas way back in 1992 (That was 6 years following the events of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City that was set also way back in 1986) that drones were commonly not used back then), but it's nearly 4 years since it began so I'm still keeping it clean & respectful by not being objectionable & sensitive to avoid being offended by the country who started it), but without the drones meaning that you have to escape from both legislation enforcement officers, & high end paramilitary or federal agency units to speak with (And injuring or murdering a cop, especially with a firearm would always result in a 3 star wanted level in the game just like if anyone like Niko, the late Johnny or Luis resists an arrest, the number of wanted level stars will change from 1 to 2, & stealing a Grotti Turismo car at a Grotti dealership store in Middle Park East reduces the likelihood of a wanted level being trimmed from 6 to 3), but the upcoming GTA VI game (Which is due to come out on November 19th this year) could be concerning due to the gameplay being realistic in terms of the violent nature of it, statistically speaking.

And thirdly that the reason why that the rock music fans were getting fed up on Nickelback is that they asked to show hostility towards the Canadian rockers when it all started on September 11th after being loved so many following the success of the single 'How You Remind Me' that came out on July 17th, 2001 (That was the year before the song reached number 1 on the New Zealand charts in June 2002 according to one of the stories that I did on my previous blogs the year before about Australia who had last won the Bledisloe Cup against us), but my female Malaysian bestie Sophia Ong still loves listening to that band according to the text that I sent on Messenger (And she used to be a Linkin Park follower back in her high school days in Malaysia).

And finally that the entertainment world was in mourning in December last year as the Asian American film star of Japanese born Cary Hiroyuki-Tagawa who played the iconic villain of the Mortal Kombat movie that came out way back in 1995 of the evil sorcerer of Shang Tsung, & Heihachi Mishima in the Tekken movie released in 2009 has passed away aged 75 in Santa Barbara, California in the United States (And they already sent thoughts, prayers & heartfelt condolences to the family, & his loved ones, may you Rest in Peace, but he joins Robert Redford, Val Kilmer, Hulk 'The Immortal' Hogan & Ozzy 'The Prince of Darkness' Osbourne (Who appeared as a cameo in the Austin Powers in Goldmember movie that was released back in 2002 along with his wife at the time of Sharon, & his children of Kelly & Jack when they were at home in California during the last days of production of the movie where film star Mike Myers met them meaning that he was a huge fanatic of them, especially the late Ozzy (Who was an icon of the early 2000s during the reality show that came around from 2002 until 2005) when he & his family appear in the climax of the movie as part of their humorous, self-aware cameo that referenced that hit reality TV show the Osbournes as they broke a fourth wall to comment on the film's plot & their public imagery as they interacted with Powers, although with Ozzy & his family making jokes about their reality show, acknowledging the absurdity, & even referencing the same plot point from the 2nd Austin Powers movie, while their appearance coincided with the premier of the Osbournes, making it a timely, meta-joke) as the other pop culture celebs who passed away last year).

Cary Hiroyuki-Tagawa

1950 - 2025

So that is my 671st blog of the year 2026 (MMXXVI) & my 23rd of this year, viva Ukraine.

Sally When the Wine Runs Out: My 22nd Blog of the year 2026

Well, kia ora guys, & welcome to our readers here in New Zealand, & around the world, I'm Whetu Ngapo & you're tuning in to my KiwiAvenger blog here on blogger, but first that back in Brisbane, Australia I heard that Hera (Who used to be my step-sis until I found out that I'm friends with her, especially on Facebook) is getting married to an Aussie man of Brendan Baker (Well, we remain old foes with the Aussies especially on the sporting field such as rugby, cricket, league & football/soccer despite having decent relations with them between us both countries) after giving birth to her second child of daughter Charli (Sister of Willow), but this is very exciting stuff (And I saw Jans for the first time since May which was the year before on the 5th of January (A day before the 10 year anniversary of the late Nan who passed away on that fateful day of January 6th (It's been 5 years since that terrible Capitol riots took place at Washington D.C. in 2021 when that dreadful American leader had lost the election to Joe Biden, so that's why that the losing US President's supporters were mad at each other as they protested about overturning the results of the election that triggered a civil unrest which ended in multiple arrests by the riot police squad for that was really rubbish, then they declared a curfew where everyone had to remain in their homes due to a clamp down being enforced on further protests as well as a freedom of speech (There will be martial law if the protestors transgress again, even if they fail to suppress), then martial legislation where armed forces such as the National Guard take control in time for the inauguration of a new leader of Biden at the time) that was a decade ago back in 2016 (That's 9 years before Carole (Who first met Pops back in 2017 a year after Nan died) passed away as well on November 17th last year) after a short battle with a terminal illness, so me & Pops will pay respects to her when we go to Nan's grave) at Caroline's with Dad & Raewyn when I was with Pops).

And secondly in music that the music bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Foo Fighters, Linkin Park, Nickelback, U2 & Metallica, are similar to the video game fighting game series like Tekken, Soul, Dead or Alive, Virtua Fighter & Mortal Kombat even though the songs like 'Californication', 'Everlong', 'In the End', 'How You Remind Me', 'Beautiful Day' & 'Nothing Else Matters', being written by a member of a music band exactly share the same role as fighting game characters like Jin Kazama, Siegfried, Kasumi, Akira Yuki & Liu Kang, although the cover songs are like guest characters who appear in a fighting game.

And thirdly on to the gaming that I've purchased the cross-gen edition of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 on the PS4 & PS5 digitally since I already own a physical copy to add to THPS 3 + 4 to my collection, & the reason why? Is that I have 16 games that I've got both physically & digitally such as Tekken 7, Need for Speed Payback, Star Wars Battlefront II 2017, Soulcalibur VI, Need for Speed Heat, Rugby Challenge 4, Need for Speed Hot Pursuit Remastered, Gran Turismo 7, Tekken 8, Tiebreak: The Official Game of ATP & WTA, Rugby 25, Jonah Lomu Rugby Challenge 4, the aforementioned Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4, Rugby League 26, & Cricket 26 (And I managed to purchase 4 old PlayStation 2 retro games on January 7th, both at EB Games such as Need for Speed Hot Pursuit 2 & FIFA 10, & also both at Cash Converters like Need for Speed Underground & Cricket 2004 (I originally thought that I was going to purchase that NRL Rugby League game from 2003, but I managed to turn down the offer due to the disc had been scratched, & I think I've got the first Star Wars Battlefront game from 2004 somewhere in my bedroom that Aunty Tan purchased it for me).

And lastly that last year marked the 40th anniversary of that dreadful bombing of the Rainbow Warrior by both French agents (Who posed as Swiss tourists when the pair got arrested there before pleading guilty to manslaughter & wilful damage which resulted in a 10 year jail sentence) in Auckland before the boat embarked & were on their way to a protest against nuclear testing in the Pacific as one crew member from Portugal named Fernando Pereira got presumably drowned while trying to retrieve his camera equipment following the first explosion that caused a major turbulence between both countries of New Zealand & France, as well as friction with allies like the UK & the United States who were seen as failing to strongly condemn the attack as the bombing galvanized New Zealand's anti-nuclear movement, contributing to the country's formal 1987 law issuing a nuclear-free area as the French paid US $8.1 million to Greenpeace & NZ $13 million to New Zealand in compensation, but they had services in both Auckland & Matauri Bay during their 40 year commemoration 6 months ago as of January this year in July 2025.

So that is my 670th blog of the year 2026 (MMXXVI) & my 22nd of this year, viva Ukraine.

96 Quite Bitter Beings: My 21st Blog of the year 2026

Well, g'day guys, & welcome to our readers here in New Zealand, & around the world, I'm Whetu Ngapo & you're tuning in to my KiwiAvenger blog here on blogger, but first that Aunty Tan & Rejean have left Whanganui in which they gladly enjoy that when our family such as Pops, Dad, Raewyn, Bryan & Viv bid farewell to them when we were at Whanganui airport (It was the day after we enjoyed our whanau meal at Rutland Arms Inn with Dad, Raewyn, Raewyn's daughter, me, Pops, Nigel, Isaac, Nathan (Nazza who is Isaac's friend, but he's very similar to my Dad in terms of or regardless of his height), Aunty Tan, Rejean, Bryan & Viv, same day we had a fish & chip dinner meal altogether for an ideal start to 2026) on the same day we saw both Andy & Kelsey briefly, but I went to the Vinyl Room to resurface the dreaded SWBF2 2005 PlayStation 2 disc that is still not working which costs 5 bucks, but unfortunately Techno Fix has been closed until January 5th so me & Pops will have to go there for disc cleaning (We tried going there, but they hardly have one, while EB Games (Who I heard rumors that the gaming retailer that I always go since it opened in 2010 here in Whanganui which is by far one of my fave shops in town is closing down all of its 38 stores & it's distribution centre due to declining sales as well as a retail climate meaning that I have to go to either the Warehouse or JB Hi-fi to buy games & stuff as I heard a comment from one of my old friends of Jay at BNZ, & what is my reaction of EB closing? Well I'm stunned, I am absolutely devastated that its finally shutting down as EB Games had to go when the employees were asked by a letter being sent, & I mean this is absolute ludicrous that the shenanigans told to close it for good according to that decision which marked a turning point) does not, so we went to the library to find out, but unfortunately that they can't do that anymore because the disc cleaner had been broken), but if it doesn't, I'll have to trade it in for money just like I did not want that EA Sports Rugby game for that is completely not working, & I'm worried about Pops buying too much food so that Dad can declutter the food every time he comes to our place at 15A Kells Avenue on Sunday if Pops is not around here (And I should not tell Pops about it so that I can keep a secret from him).

And secondly in one of 3 the newspaper articles I saw on Whanganui Chronicle on the 3rd of January that I remember such as the tennis that our own Kiwi player Lulu Sun who had to pull out of the ASB Classic Women through injury after she revealed that Sun (Who reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon the year before, & would have been a positive frame in mind following a tough season last year during the Asian swing, with 4 eye-catching weeks in China) could not recover in time & is not prepared to take on the rigours of the ATP event, but her withdrawal has been a double blow, but the latest in the tennis in Auckland at the ASB Classic women where Ukraine's Elina Svitolina triumphs against China's Wang Xin Yu in the final in which Svitolina was able to redeem herself 2 years after falling short against the American Coco Gauff (Who was in deep trouble after losing to Elina Svitolina in the Australian Open women's singles quarterfinals where TV cameras spotted Gauff at a dressing room smashing a racquet in defeat (And I mean, what the hell's wrong with it? But tournament organisers are scrambling the support staff of a tennis player of asking to cut the cameras off so they can give them space, just like an incident involving Aryna Sabalenka who smashed a racquet during the US Tennis Open last year that I saw footage from the Pardon the Interruption programme (And this is an infringement for several codes buddy!) in a newspaper headline that I saw on the Whanganui Chronicle on the 29th of January dubbed as: APPETITE FOR DESTRUCTION) in 2024, but isn't Elina's husband Gael Monfils the Frenchman who triumphed last year delighted to witness his wife's title victory at Stanley Street (And the late Carole who was always been a tennis follower would've known that result if she was alive, but unfortunately that she is no longer with us when Carole passed away last year in November for well, that was a bit of a shock (That was both sad & emotional about the loss for which I am heartbroken about it, so too is Pops (Who thought that he was a tennis follower, but he doesn't now), & her bros of Marty & Zaki), especially both the Ngapo & Webb whanau altogether (And they still have her son Andy up in the North Shore in Orewa with his wife for about presumably 7 years of Kelsey).

And thirdly that Aussie cricketer Usman Khawaja (The one who immigrated to Australia from Islamabad (Pakistan's capital city) as a child, battling the odds of to become the country's first Pakistan-born national player as he had been affected by racial stereotypes throughout his international cricket career, therefore forcing him to quit hence the reason why) is set to retire by calling time on international cricket following the 5th & final Ashes test (AKA the New Year's test) against England in Sydney at 39 who is set to pad up one last time when they take to the field for the 88th time (Where the classy left-hander returns to where it all began, back in 2011 at the Sydney Cricket Ground, also against the English) if available which begins on January 4th, therefore ending months of speculation about his future (And by the way, happy retirement Uzzie, the Aussies have done proud, so, good on him), but there has been an update as Australia win the Ashes series 4 - 1 after a most commanding but overwhelmingly dominant victory by 5 wickets over England thanks to centuries from both Travis Head (Who was the most standout player of the game) & Steve Smith in the 1st innings, while the English responded with centuries to Joe Root (His second on Aussie soil (And first since the Brisbane test) in the 1st innings, then Jacob 'Beth' Bethell (His first century ever in test cricket) in the 2nd innings, but it wasn't decent enough to overpower the Aussies in Usman Khawaja's farewell test as he signs off international cricket in style, as well as the last time that the Australians see Smith as well as Mitchell Starc (Who received the 2025-26 Ashes series MVP (Most valuable player) for being the top wicket taker of the entire campaign at 31 (That is 9 ahead of the Englishman Brydon Carse who bagged in 22 wickets for the English), Pat Cummins (Whose only involvement in the Ashes series was the 3rd test in Adelaide where Steve Smith was unavailable through sickness allowing Cummins to take over as captain, before Smith himself was available for selection in Melbourne for the Boxing Day test where he returned as the skipper after Cummins succumbed to an injury meaning that his Ashes series is over), Josh Hazlewood (Who just wasn't involved at all where he was ruled out of the series through injury) & Nathan Lyon (Who played in the 1st test in Brisbane but was left out of the 2nd test in Brisbane before returning in the 3rd test where he picked up an hamstring tear on the 5th & final day with his Ashes campaign had ended) on Aussie soil against England who won't have both Root & Ben Stokes (Who had a groin issue that tore his adductor on the fourth morning of the 5th Ashes test to become yet another casualty of England's dreadful Ashes tour as the captain bowled 10 deliveries from the beginning of play on Wednesday, then pulled up in his follow-through holding his right groin) around in 2029.

And finally that the British boxer of Anthony Joshua (The one who beat Jake Paul to retain the title in the US), has managed to survive in his ancestral homeland in Nigeria with minor injuries along with the driver who is expected to face charges for a vehicular accident causing death twice, after being discharged from hospital then being held in law enforcement custody that claimed the life of both Latif Ayodele & Sina Ghami in Lagos in which Joshua paid respects to the fallen victims at the funeral home where the bodies of his friends were being ready for repatriation.

So that is my 669th blog of the year 2026 (MMXXVI) & my 21st of this year, viva Ukraine.

Lovesick Lullaby: My 20th Blog of the year 2026

Well, hello lovelies, & welcome to our readers here in New Zealand, & around the world, I'm Whetu Ngapo & you're tuning in to my KiwiAvenger blog here on blogger, but first in the cricket as England snap a 18 match losing run on Australian soil for the first time since January 2011 during the 5th & final test in Sydney (One of the players like Ben Stokes, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jacob Bethell, & others who had never experienced a win for the English on Australian soil before, up until that point) with a win against Australia (Who retained the Ashes by clinching it in the 3rd test in Adelaide with 2 remaining tests to spare) during the Boxing Day test in Melbourne which was completed inside 2 days (And there could have been a 3rd day in front of a sold out crowd who were restless since the 2nd day ended with an English victory), but the English have lost pace bowler of Gus Atkinson who'll take no further part in the next test in Sydney AKA the New Year's Pink test through injury (And he is the 3rd English bowler after both Mark Wood (His Ashes campaign lasted just the one test in Perth) & Jofra Archer (Who played the first 3 tests in Perth, Brisbane & Adelaide before being ruled out of the Boxing Day test in Melbourne with a side strain, & is likely to be ruled out of the 5th & final test along with Atkinson scheduled in Sydney on the 4th to 8th of January at the Sydney Cricket Ground) to succumb to injuries throughout the England pace bowling camp).

And secondly that there was a rugby story, about the All Blacks would never ever win a men's Rugby World Cup again in 2019 & 2023 (Both won by South Africa), after the retirements of both great AB's of Richie McCaw (Captain of the 2007, 2011 & 2015 tournaments for New Zealand (While his only tournament that McCaw wasn't the skipper was in 2003 back then when he made his men's RWC tournament debut) & Dan Carter (Whose net worth is between 20 to 30 million New Zealand dollars due to him setting up a business during his post playing rugby career, but he & McCaw handpicked of who their favourite rugby player was, & it's been revealed that it was a New Zealander of the late Jonah Lomu who had been once best described as a human wrecking ball, as well as a juggernaut by most passionate fanatics throughout the rugby community & fraternity not just in NZ but around the world, (Especially in South Africa that their fans (Compared to the Fijians who are by far, the best rugby fans on the planet) who literally miss him) during his rugby career).

And thirdly that I was having a steak meal with chips, eggs & onions at Caroline's Boatshed on the 28th of December last year (2025), it had taken way too long like 2 hours or so when I was with Pops, Aunty Tan & Rejean (Who both seemed to love that New Zealand trip), unlike the dessert that I had here on New Year's eve at Thai Villa saying that they wasted their time to make it (And trust me that last year was turbulent due to the wars such as the one in Gaza that they used to have, but that dreadful invasion since 2022 has still been going (And they're trying to find a solution of ending it for that will be an unlikely cause for that swiftful & peaceful end to that conflict just like my dreaded Star Wars Battlefront II 2005 Playstation 2 game that Aunty Tan gave it to me for Christmas which still had its gremlins), & political upheaval such as that dreadful American leader's tariff policies & anti-immigration stance regime that had been put on in which American people have gone crazy towards him (And they'll be terrified about that).

And lastly that the season opening F1 season, takes place in Australia in Melbourne on March 6th to 8th in which the new British world champion Lando Norris (The one who races for the defending constructors champions McLaren, & is the first British world champion other than multiple world champ Sir Lewis Hamilton since the current senior consultant adviser for the Atlassian Williams F1 Team of Jenson Button back in 2009) is expected to return to defend the crown that he won last year when he was able to beat his main rivals of Red Bull's Dutchman Max Verstappen (Whose utter dominance in F1 since claiming his maiden world championship in 2021 marked the beginning of the end for him) by 2 points & his Aussie teammate Oscar Piastri at the season ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix event for which was totally epic, but the new loopholes will change, such as the car design that will be entertaining & appealing to a new generation of fans + the new Audi F1 Team will be there, so too is the Cadillac F1 Team as the 11th constructor on the grid, meanwhile the first race of this year's IndyCar (In which the championship series along with the Haas F1 Team in Formula One had been affected by that dreadful American leader's tariff situation back in April last year, especially the imported stuff such as racing cars from Dallara which comes from Italy, & equipment that left drivers, team owners & fans aghast about the US President's decision to impose such baseline tariffs like that, meaning that everything is dear at the moment in terms of the price hike, especially inflation had been skyrocketed such as high prices on tax stuff meaning that they put every duty items to America on ice which would be the worst since the Smoot-Hawley legislation act (For that had been better than the current President of the United States & his tariff policies) from 1930 designed to encourage Americans of staying away from trying to purchase foreign goods, as they guarded American farmers & businesses passed by the late US President Herbert Hoover at the time during the Great Depression a year after the greatest economic downturn had occurred when the entire United States stock market had collapsed in 1929 as many people were jobless, until the Second World War came around a decade later in 1939 where most unemployed people would even end up on the frontlines of the armed forces before it ended in 1945 (A year after the US were unable to hold an election due to that dreadful war that claimed millions of lives in 1944) with a pair of atomic bombs exploded in both Hiroshima & Nagasaki in Japan) season will take place on the streets of St Pete in Florida in the US on March 1st (A week before the Australian GP) with Spaniard Alex Palou attempting of winning an unprecedented 5th IndyCar Series championship, but his rivals like the newly knighted Sir Scott Dixon (Palou's rival & teammate driving for Chip Ganassi Racing (That's Palou's team that he currently races for, but he should've driven for Arrow McLaren SP the year before after he mistakenly signed a contract in 2023 for which was an accident, but he already had a contract with the Chip Ganassi Racing team therefore triggering a contractual dispute between both parties that hasn't resolved for) will have other ideas to beat him, & end his title chances, & last but not least, the opening round of the new Supercars Championship, takes place at Sydney Motorsport Park for the Sydney 500 (Which is a week away until the new IndyCar season, & a fortnight until the next round on the streets of Melbourne (Which hosts the season opening F1 event at the Australian Grand Prix (Adelaide hosted it first, from 1985 until 1995 until Melbourne (Who stole the GP hosting rights from Adelaide according to one of the comments that I vaguely remember from Aunty Tan back in December last year) took over from 1996 until 2019, & since 2022) before New Zealand hosts back to back events such as Taupo first at the former A1GP venue of Taupo International Motorsport Park, then to the South Island for the very first time at the newly upgraded Euromarque Motorsport Park in Ruapuna), as the new champion from last year of twice Bathurst 1000 winner Chaz Mostert who defends his crown in a Toyota Supra with other rivals such as leading Kiwi Matt Payne (The man who dominated the Bathurst 1000 last year with Aussie Garth Tander who has then won it 6 times when they held off the challenge of James Goulding & David Reynolds in the wet at Bathurst that was marred by 7 full course yellow safety car caution periods being brought out, as he became the first New Zealander to win the Great Race in 2 years since the pair of Shane van Gisbergen & Richie Stanaway in 2023 (And is Payne the new Scott McLaughlin? Is he the real deal as he becomes the next Kiwi superstar in the Supercars Championship? Well, I think so), the Ampol RB Racing (Who will return to Ford as part of their resurgence to the top last year for the Blue Oval in terms of parity (Similar to McLaren in Formula One where they dominated the constructors championship 2 years straight in both the year before & last year with Britain's Lando Norris (One of 4 world champions on the F1 grid (3 former & 1 current) this year along with Fernando Alonso (Twice in 2005-06), Lewis Hamilton (7 times in 2008, 2014-15, & 2017-20) & Max Verstappen (4 times from 2021 until the year before) for which will be the first since 2022 where Alonso, Hamilton & Verstappen lined up, but Sebastian Vettel was there racing for Aston Martin until he retired of course (And Lando is taking Vettel's place with the 4 world champions lining up in the 2026 grid won 14 world championships between them) finally coming out on top of course to end the utter dominance of Max who dominated the competition 4 times in a row from 2021, until also the year before) for the first time since 2009 for next season after spending 16 seasons with Holden then Chevy) duo of both Broc Feeney (Who Mostert had him on the ropes during the opening laps of the final race of the season when a crucial error from Feeney, handed Chaz the championship for the very first time as he managed to cling on to the lead until the checkered flag had waved in that historic first ever finals series where Chazzie took control of it as he had taken the advantage in the aftermath of Feeney who made a mistake, & from then on, as the Supercars Championship, was for Chaz's taking) & former champion Will Brown, Tickford Racing's Cameron Waters, & the former champion from 2023 who drives for DJR of Brodie Kostecki, will attempt to end Chaz's aspirations of retaining the title.

So that is my 668th blog of the year 2026 (MMXXVI) & my 20th of this year, viva Ukraine.

Roll on Down the Highway: My 19th Blog of the year 2026

Well, hi everyone, & welcome to our readers here in New Zealand, & around the world, I'm Whetu Ngapo & you're tuning in to my KiwiAvenger blog here on blogger, but first in the cricket in New Zealand that the Black Caps (Who had to declare not once, but twice in the 1st & 2nd innings) secure an unlikely win by 323 runs over the West Indies at Bay Oval in Tauranga to take out the test series 2 - 0 thanks to a ton in both innings from New Zealand captain Tom Latham, & a double century by none other than Devon Conway (Who got a ton in the 2nd innings as he was awarded standout player of the match honours) during the first innings, then a fifer from Jacob Duffy (Who was the standout player of the series as the top wicket taker as he gets past Sir Richard Hadlee way back in 1985 as the most wickets taken in all formats by a New Zealand bowler) in the 2nd innings to add to his 4 wickets in the 1st innings as we put them into a strong position to win the 3rd test comprehensively, in which we ended 2025 on a perfect note.

And secondly that I had a cracker of a Christmas there with the whole family at Dad's place where we opened the presents (Including F1: the Movie starring Brad Pitt that I haven't still seen, & the Star Wars Battlefront II PlayStation 2 game was the best Christmas present I've ever had until it turned out to be a disaster when there was a disk read error, meaning that it did not work due to the scratches that the disk has had (Aunty Tan brought the one that was just available in Canada as she said to me) & had our traditional Christmas dinner, but the Northland one in 2023 with the late Carole (Who had her last Christmas here in New Zealand the year before where she was in Dubai in the UAE to be by her bro Zaki's side, & the year after her last Christmas here in Whanganui in 2022), Pops, Kathryn & Ken was the one that I overly impressed the most in all of the Christmases that I have ever experienced.

And thirdly in the rugby that there are 5 potential debutants for the All Blacks could even feature this year such as Corey Kellow, Siale Lauaki, Kini Naholo, Dylan Pledger & Tyrone Thompson even though with our next test scheduled in July against France in the inaugural game of the World Rugby Nations Championship (In that is similar to cricket's Champions Trophy, as well as league's Pacific Rugby League Championships, & football/soccer's Finalissima) on home soil at the new 30,000 seat One New Zealand Stadium in Christchurch (Our first test in that city since 2022 where New Zealand had tasted defeat against Argentina during the Rugby Championship, but France haven't played at that venue since 2013 in which the All Blacks had a comprehensive 30 - 0 drubbing over the French), followed by Ireland at the 50,000 seat Eden Park in Auckland (In which Ireland haven't played at that venue since 2022 before claiming an unlikely test series win after being 1 - 0 down, but the AB's are seeking to extend that unbeaten record to 53 in which the ground is most favourable for the home team in tests), & Italy at the 34,500 Sky Stadium in Wellington (While both Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin & FMG Stadium Waikato in Hamilton are both forced to sit that one out of hosting a home All Blacks test) also both at home before embarking a 4 match test series (Both in Joburg, & one each in also both Cape Town & at a neutral venue) against South Africa in rugby's greatest rivalry, & after that it's Australia (In which we play both test matches in a home and away series against them, but we're not playing Argentina & the reason why? Is that the last time we have not met them was in 2010), then England away in a chance to avenge the demons from last year as well as Scotland & Wales before the finals takes place at Allianz Stadium Twickenham in London in November 2026.

And finally that I have revealed my fave F1 constructor that I'm supporting, & it's McLaren (I should've gone for RB Racing Bulls because of the constructor that our own Kiwi Liam Lawson who drives for them), but the reason why? Is that it's British, but founded by a late New Zealander named Bruce McLaren who was once part of the golden generation of racing car drivers here in New Zealand during the 1960's along with the late Le Mans winning driver of Chris Amon, & the former world champion from 1967 of the late Denny Hulme (Well, I have mentioned that story before in my blogs like twice like in both 2022 & also the year before, but there has been an update as legendary New Zealand IndyCar driver Scott Dixon (Who has been champion 6 times in IndyCar (2003, 2008, 2013, 2015, 2018 & 2020), as well as he first came to the US way back in 1999 to compete in Indy Lights, a year before becoming champion back in 2000, then he became rookie of the year a year later also back in 2001 (Same year that he won the race at age 20 in Nazareth, Pennsylvania (The Andretti family's home track), & is 2nd on the all-time American Open Wheel racing list behind the great AJ Foyt, with 59 (8 behind him), has been given a knighthood for his services to motor racing as part of the New Year's honours list in our country of New Zealand), but my favourite F1 track would have to be Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve in Montreal, Quebec, Canada (Which is near Mont-Saint Hilaire where Aunty Tan & Rejean currently live) since it appeared on the Gran Turismo 7 Spec III update along with the Yas Marina Circuit located in Yas Island in the United Arab Emirates, because it used to be the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit at Albert Park in Melbourne, Australia as Aunty Tan told me last year during our conversation at Thai Villa on New Year's Eve.

So that is my 667th blog of the year 2026 (MMXXVI) & my 19th of this year, viva Ukraine.